


You Have A Choice

by classicecilia



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Discussion of Abortion, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/M, Female Kageyama Tobio, Female Tendou Satori, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Male-Female Friendship, Original Character(s), Sadayuki is Kageyama's Stepfather, Teen Pregnancy, Tendou is Hinata's Half-Sister, Unplanned Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-30
Updated: 2020-11-11
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:55:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 8,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27136942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/classicecilia/pseuds/classicecilia
Summary: Kageyama Tobio wants to move on from her past, have a fresh start, and makes the most of her time here in high school. Too bad life decides to fuck it all up.As Tobio is put in a strange yet difficult predicament, she turns to others who supports but she knows they all have the same answer, "it's your choice to make..."It had to be done.
Relationships: Kageyama Tobio/Original Male Character(s), Kageyama Tobio/Tsukishima Kei
Comments: 27
Kudos: 74





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Not so new to AO3 but how do you make this work in progress? It said it's complete (which is not). Help???

Tobio learns the hard way that life is never easy, nor is it fair. Even if life did seem easy, there will be a price to pay for that kind of life. 

She grips the edge of her shirt tightly as she pulls her knees to her chest, curling further as her ears perk at her mothers’ harsh tone screaming into her phone, while her stepfather sits on the other couch across from her. Through the peaks of her arms, Tobio sees her stepfather frowns at her as he heads to the kitchen, where she heard him faintly telling her mother something, his tone soft yet stern, as if scolding his students when they mess up during practice. Tobio couldn’t make out what they’re saying but judging by the speed of their hush tones, she assumes they’re probably arguing. 

Never, Tobio thought, never has she ever felt this way. No, not even when she was bullied back in junior high, not even when her teammates turned their backs on her, or even when her mother remarried another man. The pain is there, but this pain is different; it’s not only the tears she shed nor the weight pushing on her chest ー it’s the feeling of helplessness and guilt that wouldn’t stop pulling at her chest. 

Tobio thought she knew him well, considering the fact that they knew each other since their first year in junior high. Three years they knew each other, and genuinely, Tobio thought she knew him well enough. Apparently, she didn’t know him well, nor did she know him enough.

No, not well enough; she didn’t know him at all. 

For a moment, she feels like her life was over. She could never play volleyball, the possibility of her continuing her studies is less likely, and Tobio knows that she will have to care for this ‘child’ that she never chose to have. Tobio barely moves on from junior high and this?

She’ll prefer death over this shame. 

“Tobio,” a deep voice mutters softly and she looks up a bit to see her stepfather crouches down before her. His hand hovers over her small ones as if asking silently for permission to hold them. 

Unconsciously, her small hands reach out to him and his large fingers wrap gently around them, as if fearing that it would break under his strong grip, his thumbs gently rubbing her knuckles. 

“It’s okay to be scared,” he soothes, his eyes lock with hers. “It’s natural for you to feel this way in this situation, and it’s okay to feel confused and scared and…” he trails off for a moment before continuing, “just remember that your mother and I are here for you, no matter what your decision is.”

“He’s right,” another voice said, but much lighter than her stepfathers; Tobio turns to the side to see her mother sitting down on the couch next to her small form. Her stepfather releases one of Tobio’s hands as her mother goes to grab the other. “It’s not too late to make a choice, Tobio. You have five months to decide, and whatever decision you make, we’ll support you all the way.”

Tobio feels her breath hitches at the words. She opens her mouth to reply, but the words get stuck in her throat and only the sounds of her breath comes out. Her eyes blur with tears before it slowly rolls down her cheeks just as sobs begin to overtake her body. Slowly her head bows down and she covers her face with her hands as she begins to sob harder, all the while feeling gentle yet firm arms wrapping around her before another one joins.

It didn’t take her long to figure out whose other arms it belongs to. Slowly, Tobio begins to wail as she hears the gentle voices of her parents whispering their support in her ear while nestling the girl between them. 

She knows that she had a choice, but she couldn’t help but feel that she doesn’t.


	2. Welcome to Karasuno High

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things to mention:
> 
> Sprained ankle - this is based on my own personal experiences because I sprained my ankle, like, thrice and I eventually stopped playing volleyball (yes, I used to be part of the schools' team). I exaggerate a bit in Kageyama's because why not? I think it's an interesting thing to write about considering how much canon Kageyama loves volleyball.
> 
> Clubs sign ups - I don't know how sign ups work in Japanese high schools, so I did it based on my own experiences, to which those who wants to join the club will have to go this senior during lunch time and practice early morning. So I will be doing practices and stuff based on that.
> 
> I think that's all for now, but more to come!

_ Dear Ms Kageyama Tobio, _

_ Thank you for applying and expressing interest in Shiratorizawa Academy. We have taken the time to carefully look through your transcripts from your previous study in junior high and your results in the entrance exam as of recently. However, we regret to inform you that your performance in the exam did not meet the requirement of the school... _

The moment Tobio reads over until the third sentence, she knows what the answer would be, so she shouldn’t be surprised. The entrance exam is hard, Tobio thought, of course I won’t get accepted; I barely pass junior high. She smiled thinly at the letter and gently put it down on her table as if the letter was made out of glass before sitting on the bed, putting her arm crutch to the side. Tobio takes a deep breath to calm her pounding heart and wipes her eyes as it becomes glassy. 

She wipes it again. And again. And again. Until she stops wiping and allows the tears to roll down her cheeks, yet she maintains her smile as she looks into the distance. 

“It’s okay,” she mutters to herself as she lays down. “It’s okay...it’ll be just fine...at least, I got into Karasuno…” She mutters the same words over and over again until sleep overtakes her for the night.

Morning comes and Tobio awakens to a knock before hearing the door open. She sits up quickly to see her mother by her bedroom door, looking at her in concern and Tobio grabs her phone to see that it was nearly afternoon. The late time makes her groan.

“Are you...okay?” her mother asks, her eyebrows scrunch in concern. “You didn't come down for dinner last night ever since you got the letter, and you skipped breakfast. Well, I already know why for the second one but what happened last night?”

At the mention of the letter, Tobio flinches and her mothers’ stance relaxes as she gently closes the door before sitting by her bed. “Did you...get in?” she asks. Tobio merely turns away and stuffs her face into a wet pillow from the tears last night. At the corner of her eyes, she can see her mothers’ eyes soften in understanding and merely puts her hand on Tobio’s shoulder. 

“It’s okay if you didn’t get in,” she soothes as she feels Tobio beginning to quiver, “the people there aren’t that friendly anyway, I’d doubt you’ll cope well there.” Tobio takes a peak at her as she continues. “Also, studying there is kinda terrible, not going to lie. Karasuno suits you better.” 

The last sentence makes Tobio giggle a bit and she smiles, feeling proud that she manages to make her girl smile. Then, she stands. “Well, you better get up, I’ll reheat your breakfast and make it lunch instead.” Her mother stops halfway out of Tobio's room when she pops her head in and adds jokingly, "For God's sake, wake up early, Tobio. What if I had to work early?" Before immediately leaving when she hears Tobio whine. 

"Mama!"

-<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 -

School day came quicker than Tobio anticipated as she found herself standing before it: Karasuno High School. The buildings are similar to what most average Japanese high schools are, and at the gate where the black signboard with white kanji letters spell 'Karasuno High School'. Tobio stares at the building, rubbing her sweaty palms together as she takes deep breaths to calm her speeding heart. 

Maybe she should have let her mother accompany here because dang, she's nervous. With a gulp, she slowly limps to her homeroom. She had about twenty minutes, so she limps slowly into the campus and up the stairs, internally groaning at this. It was one of the instances that Tobio wishes that sometimes these schools have a lift for the convenience of people with physical disabilities, but she quickly shakes it off and continues her way, all the while remembering her mothers' words.

"Take it easy on the ankle," she says as Tobio walks to the entrance with her right arm in her forearm crutch while the other holds her bag. "It's not fully heal, so be gentle with yourself. Keep your crutch with you. It's expensive." Tobio can hear her mother huff and it bring a smile to her face, despite being reminded of the fact that she lost her previous crutch in her third year in junior high. 

"Mama, calm down," Tobio mutters as she put her shoes on. "I'll bring it home in one piece."

Her mother rolls her eyes before leaning down and places a chaste kiss on Tobio's forehead. "Be safe, alright," she mutters, "Learn to have fun...make friends. I don't want to see you in pain anymore..."

Tobio sighs at this but nonetheless, gives her mother a smile. "I will, mama."

The day went by fine so far. Tobio tries to talk to some of the girls and befriend them, but the majority find themselves put off by her scowl, so she gives up. Lunch begins and she goes to the nearby vending machine to buy a small carton of milk. Taking her right arm out of the cuff of her crutch to pull her purse out for cash, only for some of the small coins to fall off. She groans and uses her right hand to clamp her purse while holding her crutch as she slowly crouches down to pick the coins with her other hand, trying not to be gentle with her braced ankle. 

"Hi, do you need help?" someone asks and Tobio looks up to see a short boy, probably a few centimeters shorter than her, with bright orange hair and wide eyes with a matching smile. He wears a boys' uniform with the addition of light-coloured sweater. 

She gives a soft smile and mutters thank you when the boy crouches down to help pick up the coins before giving it to her. She put the coins into the coin slot and chose a carton of milk, before happily sipping the drink. 

"What's your name?" the boy asks. "I'm Hinata Shouyou, a first year. You?"

Hearing the boy, Hinata, introducing himself to her stuns Tobio for the moment. In the years of her life, she never had people approaching her, much less introducing themselves to her, and to see someone not feeling afraid of her scowl, first of all, and introducing themselves bring this warmth to her chest. Perhaps, for the first time, he may be going to be her friend.

"Kageyama Tobio," she replies. "Also first year."

Hinata's beams from ear to ear and joins her as she goes to sit at a nearby bench as she drinks her milk, listening as Hinata begins to talk about his day with her giving her comments here and there. The feeling is great; Hinata didn't seem to mind the fact that she remains silent while he talks, as long as she listens to his stories, whereas Tobio found herself actually enjoys hearing him talk. It is a new feeling to have and for the first time since she took a step into the school, she got excited at the idea of coming to this school just to hear her new friend.

"Are you planning to join any clubs here?" Hinata asks suddenly, which takes Tobio off-guard for the moment. "I'm going to join the volleyball team!"

"That's cool," she says softly, "I used to be in the volleyball team until, well," with that, she motions to her brace ankle. "It kinda sucks because I really love volleyball."

Hinata perks up at that. "Really?! Can you tell me more?"

And so she did. Tobio didn't realise that the more she speaks about volleyball, the happier she appears and Hinata found himself charming with her smile, completely the opposite of her scowl when he first saw her from afar. Just then, an idea comes to his mind. "Hey, how about you become the manager instead?"

Tobio stops and turns to him for a moment. "What?"

"I think you'll be a great manager. You have a really great knowledge about volleyball and I think it'll be a great help to the team. In that way, you are still involved in volleyball."

She blinks at his explanation. That's something she'd never thought about it; most of the time, she’s bum over the fact that she can't play volleyball that she didn't really think about other options. Maybe she should...

"Yeah, maybe I should," she mutters to herself as Hinata immediately urges her to come with him to the seniors' class to sign up. A soft smile can be seen on her face as she follows the still chattering boy. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoy! Do leave kudos and comments (ofc you don't have to hahahaha) <3


	3. Sadayuki Mizoguchi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for your kind comments and kudos omg! I genuinely did not expect that kind of response considering that I just started this story (◕‿◕)♡ I'll do my best! Also, a celebrate update for me finishing my work (after a week of stress hahaa) but I still have stuff to do TT
> 
> Also, Tobio is meeting the man who she didn't expect is going to be her future stepfather

Tobio returns home with a huge smile on her face; she had a great day on her first day of high school, which is something that she didn't really get to experience.

"Tadaima!" she calls out as she enters her home, putting her arm crutch to the side before gently sitting down to take her shoes off. She hears her mother reply, "okaeri" before emerging from the kitchen and kneels down to help Tobio up after she arranged her shoes on the rack. "How was your first day?"

To her surprise, Tobio beams. In many years of her life when she greets her daughter back home after school ends, Tobio never shows any sort of happiness on her first day and by her body language, she didn't need to ask to know what happened. So to see her so happy after the first day is such a huge change, and not to mention a positive one; she always wants to see Tobio happy in her school, to have friends and not be alone. No mother would want their child to be alone when they're not there.

"Really now?" she grins as she guides Tobio up the stairs. "Well, tell me later when we have dinner. Oh, and we're going to have a guest over soon."

Tobio perks up at that. "Is he coming?" At her mothers' nod, Tobio quickly goes to shower and changes before heading downstairs. Her mother has Tobio sit on the couch as she went to prepare dinner for them and their coming guest. As she prepares their dinner, Tobio settles on watching a cartoon since none of the channels interests her, all the while wondering what he looks like. Is he tall or short? Is he athletic or book smart? If he's athletic, would he love volleyball? If he does, will he show her some techniques? All these questions run around in her mind until the doorbell rings. She sits up straight as her mother goes to the door. 

"Konbanwa Hana," a deep voice can be heard from the entrance, "how are you?"

"Konbawa Mizoguchi," her mother replies, and Tobio could hear the smile in her reply. "I've been good, thank you. Come in, come in; dinner's ready and we shouldn't keep Tobio waiting."

"I take it Tobio's your daughter then." At that, Tobio slips her arm into the cuff of her crutch and limps out of the living room to the hallway, which heads directly to the entrance. There, she sees a man, about a few inches taller than her mother which is not surprising, considering the fact that she's tall for an average Japanese woman, with cropped dirty blonde hair and sharp eyes. Tobio blinks at the man; why does he look familiar?

The man, Mizoguchi, smiles at her. "Hello, Tobio. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Tobio limps over and shakes his overstretch hand. "Um...nice to meet you...I guess?" She sees her mother turn away from her, the palm of her hand covering her mouth as Tobio notices her shoulders shake slightly. The girl pouts. "Mama!" Her mother bursts out laughing in response. 

She whines at her mother who laughs even further, in the corner of her eyes, she sees Mizoguchi watches with a small smile, albeit shifts a bit in his place. He looks confuse, which is expected considering the fact that her mother just laughs at her for being who she is. "I'm sorry, but," he sheepishly scratches the back of his head, "may I know what happened to cause you to laugh like this Hana, Tobio?"

Her mother wipes a tear that is coming off her eye from laughing so much, she sniffs a bit and takes a few deep breaths to calm herself, though she giggles a bit at her daughters' pout. "Oh, it's not you," she answers, her hand wave in a dismissive manner, "Tobio is often awkward with social situations, so to see her able to read it for once, it's funny. It typically took me nudging her for her to understand."

"Ahh," is his only response. Tobio huffs at this before turning and limps to the dining room, followed by her mother and Mizoguchi. The two converse as Tobio goes to sit down on the chair while her mother and Mizoguchi sit on the other side. 

"Itadakimasu," the three of them mutters before digging in.

"So Tobio," her mother says, "what do you want to tell about your first day? You did say it was great."

"Oh, I made a friend," she beams, "his name is Hinata and he likes volleyball too!" 

"Does he?" Mizoguchi responds this time, "do you know what position he is?"

Tobio looks up in thought. "He wants to spiker, but I don't know if he can though because he's short."

The sentence causes her mother to burst while Mizoguchi just grins. "Well, sometimes short people can be a spiker," he says, "let him show you. There may be something surprising about him."

She takes that thought into consideration before nodding. The three of them converse with each other and Tobio is ecstatic to learn that Mizoguchi is a volleyball coach for the high school volleyball team. She's even more elated when Mizoguchi offered to take her to one of the volleyball practices.

Their familial relationship starts up great, as Mizoguchi prepares to leave, Tobio blurts out, "Mama, you should marry him soon."

Tobio has a sense of satisfaction as she watches the two of them blush with Mizoguchi, laughing a bit before he leaves. 

Yeah, he's the one for her mother.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translation:
> 
> Tadaima = I'm home
> 
> Okaeri = welcome home
> 
> Konbanwa = good evening
> 
> Itadakimasu = thank you for the food 
> 
> Do let me know if there's a mistranslation ^^


	4. Meet Yuji

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SURPRISE! DOUBLE UPDATE TODAY!
> 
> First of all, apologies in advance because the tenses here changes from past to present tense, which I found to be much easier to use. So I will be going back to my previous chapters to change the tenses soon! 
> 
> Also,
> 
> Tobio's boyfriend Yuji appeared and Hinata doesn't like him

Tobio wakes up early that morning, dresses in her sports attire, bringing her school bag with her, before limping down the stairs. Her mother is in the kitchen, preparing breakfast for the two of them. 

"Just be careful alright?" her mother says as she goes to clean the dishes at the sink, "I know you're not playing but still, knowing you, you'll probably try to at least set."

"I will, mama," Tobio replies as she limps towards the entrance. Her mother follows after setting the dishes up to dry. She waits for her mother to put her shoes on before the two of them make their way to the car outside with her mother helping Tobio settle on the front passenger seat.

"Do you want anything to eat for dinner?" her mother asks as she drives the two of them to school. "Mizoguchi is coming again for dinner, so do you want anything specific?"

Tobio thought for a moment before she shakes her head. "Anything is fine. I don't have a specific."

She can tell that her mother takes a glance at her from the corner of her eyes. "You sure?" 

"Yeah."

"Hmm, alright then," is her only response. Both are silent for the moment before Tobio reluctantly speaks up, "I'm going out this weekend with Yuji. He asked me this morning and I said yes."

Her mother perks up at that, "where," she asks curtly, which take the young girl off guard. Tobio didn't expect her mother to sound cold...or demanding even. She shrugs it off, however. "To the park nearby," Tobio reply uneasily. "Why?"

"Oh, nothing," her mother says cheerfully, which contrasts to her cold tone from a few moments before. "Can I meet him first though?"

Tobio looks at her mother in confusion. "But, you've met him before, mama. When I was about to enter my third year in junior high."

"Oh, I know," her mothers' voice is so cheerful that Tobio is sure for the moment that it's fake. Does she hate Yuji? "I forgot about his face, so I want to meet him again to remember." There she is again, back to her dark tone. 

Tobio didn't know how to respond to that, so wisely, she keeps quiet until she arrives at Karasuno. Her mother is about to exit the car to help Tobio but the young quickly motions for her to stay at her place. Gently, Tobio successfully got off the car and beams at her mother, who smiles at her in return. "I'll be back soon," she says before she closes the car door and makes her way into the school campus, to the gym, where Hinata stands by the door. With a deep breath, she approaches him. 

Here goes nothing.

-<3<3<3<3<3-

Morning practice has been...something. For one, Tobio realises just how terrible Hinata is at volleyball. Heck, he couldn't even receive for God's sake! Just how is he going to be a regular if he can't do something as simple as receiving? Probably not even close! Next, Asahi, a big third-year and ace according to Daichi, but gets nervous easily...which she can see but he definitely deserves the position. Sugawara is calm and collected, great qualities for a setter as he was able to adjust his set that is suitable for the team members who's going to serve. Ennoshita and Kinoshita are reliable and steady players, Tsukishima is...a douche. That's the best way she can describe that tall, blonde boy. It kinda infuriated her because he has the skills in blocking, yet he lacks motivation. She hoped he'll warm up some time along the way. Nishinoya is great at receives, which she understands why he became a libero but he's loud, on par with the boisterous Tanaka. Tobio found herself overwhelmed with their personality but she'll learn to get used to it.

Oh, and she gets along well with their teams' manager, Shimizu, whom she's sworn to be the most beautiful girl she has ever met. 

Next thing she knows, Tobio found herself arguing with Hinata, which earn them getting a kick out of the gym. Understandably so. 

"You want to be an ace of the team yet you can't receive? Seriously, Shoyo!" Tobio growls as she throws the ball at him and he fails to receive it. Again. "I'm going to shape you, idiot. Gosh."

"I'm sorry," Hinata whines. "Gosh, you're a monster with your demands, sheesh."

The two had been arguing and yelling at each other, though they recognize that none of them is out of hate. It's just their way of communicating with each other. Others may see them as two people hating one each other, but these two know that the harsh words don't mean it literally. Tobio helps Hinata practice with his receives until she notices a boy approaching. He is tall, around Tsukishima's height, and has brown hair with light skin. He is in his school uniform and has a sports bag with him. 

Tobio blinks. "Yuji?" 

The boy, Yuji, laughs. "About time you notice me! Though you're going blind for the moment. I got out of practice early and I thought of walking you home."

Tobio opens her mouth to reject the offer but suddenly remembers that Mizoguchi is coming that night. Eventually, she nods and heads to the bench to get her bag. Hinata follows her and whispers, "who's he?" She looks at Hinata to see him motioning to Yuji, who's leaning against the wall while looking through his phone. 

"That's Yuji," she replies as she put her over her shoulder. "He's, um, my boyfriend from junior high."

Hinata takes a moment to look at her, turns to a bore-looking Yuji, and back to her. After some time, he says, "I don't like him."

The tall girl blinks at her first friend. "What?"

"I don't like him," Hinata says a bit louder with a shrug. This catches Yuji's attention and Hinata goes back to whispering. "I don't know what you see in him, but I find him kinda....shady."

Tobio snorts instead. "Shady? What are you, American for you to use that word?"

Hinata glares at his friend. "Hey! And for your information, I'm half-Scottish!"

"That means you're a foreigner," Yuji snickers and the two turn to glare at him.

"Don't be rude," says Tobio. "If you hate foreigners, then I guess you hate me then, cause I'm half-Korean."

Hinata looks at Tobio with stars in his eyes at the thought that he's not the only half-Japanese here. Yujihuffs and pushes himself off the wall. "Whatever. Come on, Tobio. It's getting dark."

Tobio rolls her eyes at this and is about to follow him when Hinata stops her. She turns to him in confusion. "Just telling you my thoughts; I don't like him and I think he's a dick." Tobio didn't know why, but she laughs a bit at this before bidding him goodbye and she's off. Honestly, she didn't see anything wrong with Yuji. He can be a bit of a dick, yeah, but he's not a bad person. 

Right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So! We met Tobio's boyfriend. I think you can guess what will happen based on the tags itself. Also, the idea of Hinata being half-Scottish is from his hair and the idea of Kageyama being half-Korean is from a friend. She also watched Haikyuu and told me that she thought Kageyama is half-Korean. So I'm like, why not ヽ(・∀・)ﾉ


	5. Aoba Johsai

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tobio needs a ride home, so Hinata takes her to Aoba Johsai where Mizoguchi is working
> 
> Also, sis is updating everything so fast bcos sis is procrastinating. I'm gonna die soon near my deadline :'D

Days pass since Tobio has been getting to know Mizoguchi, she not only finds herself enjoying his company but sees him as part of the family. Now, she couldn’t but is looking forward to him coming over for dinner, which has become a routine for them now. 

Except...to get home. Typically her mother would come and pick her up or sometimes Yuji would come to accompany her, with Hinata glaring at him until they’re out of his sight. But now, her mother is now back in the hospital when it’s her turn to take the shift and actually called Mrs Okamura, Yuji’s mother, to pick her up. Well, she’s not here right now. 

And today has to be the day Yuji has extended basketball practice. 

“Is your mom coming, Tobio?” Hinata asks as the two waits by the school gates. Tobio has tried to convince Hinata to go home first and that he doesn’t need to wait here with her, but he stubbornly insists to do so, even though he knows that he will get in trouble with his mom for coming home late. 

“She’s not coming,” Tobio replies as her left-hand fiddles with the straps of her bag. “Mrs Okamura is supposed to pick me up but I guess she forgot.”

Hinata huffs in disapproval. “That’s irresponsible.” He sees the sun beginning to set slowly into the horizon and he knows that he has to get home soon. “Maybe you can go to her hospital? If it’s too far then maybe to your house?”

“Both are kinda far though,” Tobio mutters, and a moment of pause, before an idea comes to her head. “We can go to Aoba Johsai.”

“Seijoh?” Hinata startles at the suggestion. “But why that school though?”

“Mizoguchi-san is going to be there. He’ll drive me home, though I hope he’s still there…”

Hinata is silent for the moment, his eyes stare at Tobio before saying, “get on the back.”

Tobio blinks at Hinata. “Pardon?”

“Get on the back,” he repeats as he gets on his back, his hand patting the back seat. “I’ll take you there.”

Tobio seems to take a while to process the information before snorting, “Are you sure you can take me there, Shoyo? I fear we’ll fall off instead of staying upright.”

Hinata huffs. “I’ve taken a number of people before this bike and it’s fine. Come on, Bakageyama, we don’t have time.”

A tick appears on Tobio’s head, “shut up, Hinata-boke!” But complies and gently gets on the back seat, using one hand to hold her crutch while the other places on Hinata’s right shoulder. Gently, Hinata begins paddling along the sidewalk as Tobio makes herself comfortable the best she can on her backseat. For someone small, Hinata is able to keep her upright on his bicycle well and she truly appreciates the fact that he insists on helping her. 

To find that kind of friend is not easy. 

It takes a while for the two to arrive at Aoba Johsai, but Tobio didn’t mind; while Hinata paddles along, Tobio enjoys feeling the wind blowing against her hair, feeling more peaceful than ever. To her, it’s hard to get that kind of feeling when outside her home and now she achieves it, she wants to treasure it. 

“Thank you, Shoyo,” Tobio mutters softly as she gently gets off the back seat of his bicycle. The boy beams at her. 

“I better get home now,” Hinata says, “Let me know when you’re home!” With that, he speeds his bike back home and Tobio didn’t even get a chance to say her goodbyes. She huffs but smiles anyway, before limping inside. She asks the nearby student for a gym and they are kind enough to offer their help - which she politely declines - upon seeing her struggle a bit with her crutch, but again, she appreciates it nonetheless. 

Considering the fact that Aoba Johsai is one of the powerhouses, the school does in fact reflect that status, though she knows it’s a bit less excessive in comparison to Shiratorizawa. She hobbles over to the gym to see that practice is still on-going, and Tobio shrinks when she recognizes some of her previous teammates from Kitagawa Daiichi. 

Now, she decides to just head home and make a turn to escape, but a voice makes her freeze. 

“My, my, is that Tobio over there,” a familiar female voice sneers, and Tobio slowly turns in hoping secretly it’s not who she thinks she is. Her assumptions are correct, unfortunately. Standing there, in her school uniform, is Kana and her two lackeys, Emi and Miki. The source of her torture back in junior high. She could never escape these three, can she?

“Ahh, good to see you too, Kana?” It sounds more like a question than a greeting, but Tobio doubts Kana would like the greeting anyway. 

“So you bust your ankle this time?” she giggles as the other joins in and begins to make mocking noises of what seems to be the sound of pain mix between laughter. “It really has to take this much to tell you that you’re not suitable for volleyball.”

Tobio snaps at her, “what I do with my ankle is none of your business.”

Kana gives her a tight smile. “Still so fierce, I see. No wonder our teammates abandoned you.” Tobio flinches at the statement and Kana grins widely, clearly enjoying her reaction to it. “Well, I can’t blame them. You  _ are  _ a king after all; barking orders as if we were dogs and yells when we do wrong. I think the title suits you anyway, right?”

Tobio couldn’t bring herself to look up anymore, tears of frustration wells up in her eyes as she bites her lip. Her right arm shakes a bit in the cuff of her crutch and honestly, if it isn’t because of her loose ankle, she would have bolt out the campus without a thought. Far or not. 

Then she hears a voice and this time, it brings a sense of relief to her. Mizoguchi appears to have notice Tobio between the open doors and jogs out to see her there with three girls before her. His eyes narrow. “Yes, may I help you, girls?”

“Oh nothing,” Kana says sweetly. “We’re just talking to her because we’re wondering what she’s doing here in our school.”

“You mean her,” Mizoguchi motions to a still Tobio, his sentence sounds more like a statement than a question. “She’s here to see me.”

Kana gives a sceptical look, however, but Mizoguchi ignores it. “Tobio,” he calls out gently, “what are you doing here? You should be home with your mother.”

Her muttering is so soft that Mizoguchi has to strain to hear it. “Mama has a shift tonight and tomorrow, so she can’t pick me up.” That is the only thing he needs to hear before he ushers the girl into the gym, but not without giving a quick glare to the three girls, who shudder and wisely walk away. 

Mizoguchi helps the girl to a bench. “We still have a few minutes until practice ends,” Mizoguchi says, looking at the time on his watch, “About five minutes. Are you okay waiting here?” A nod is all he needs before he heads back to the team, barking at some members as they slack off. 

Tobio settles in her seat as she watches Mizoguchi coach the team. She manages to recognize two of her former seniors, Iwaizumi and Oikawa whom she admires from afar but with them being in the boys' team, she didn’t really have the chance to talk to them. Maybe they could talk sometime? Who knows.

“Hello,” a deep voice startles Tobio and she turns to see another man on the bench. He’s a bit older than Mizoguchi, maybe around the 50s, with dark hair and has a few wrinkles. His sharp eyes bore into her. “Hello,” Tobio replies softly.

“Are you related to Sadayuki? I don’t recall him ever mentioning having family.”

“Umm…” Tobio trails off, wondering if she should say it, but she decides that it wouldn’t hurt, “he’s engaged to my mother.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do expect more to come because I'm procrastinating ahahahahaha 
> 
> Kudos and Comments are appreciated!


	6. Enter Oikawa and Iwaizumi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tobio meets her former upperclassmen
> 
> Also, still procrastinating

The man looks at Tobio in shock at her answer, while Tobio in turn looks confuse at his expression. He immediately feign coughs into his fist and clears his throat. “Engaged, you say,” he says slowly, and the girl slowly nods in confirmation. “Huh, I didn’t expect him to engage in all of these things. Has been quite a loner as long as I remember.”

Tobio perks up at that. “What’s he like?” 

The man laughs. “A loner, I said before. Like me, however, he loves volleyball more than anything but didn’t make it to the national team,” he smiles as he looks at his fellow coach, “he didn’t mind though, so he takes a different approach and becomes a coach. As long as the work involves volleyball, he wouldn’t mind.”

The girl beams at that, immediately reminded of her dream before the accident. While she’s devastated over the fact that there’s a high chance that she won’t be playing volleyball, the idea that she can at least contribute makes her happy. So in a sense, she can relate to him. 

“Irihata-san!” Mizoguchi calls out from where he stands near the team. “I hope you didn’t disturb her!”

The man, Irihata, she learns, laughs boisterously before he replies, “she’s an interesting one, I tell you!” he grins, “why would you hide her from us?”

Mizoguchi rolls his eyes before dismissing the team. They bow to him before they begin cleaning the gym up, wiping the floor and putting the balls away. Irihata stands up and stretches a bit before approaching Mizoguchi. The two converse for a moment before Irihata nods and leaves the gym, but not before giving Tobio a small grin. Tobio didn’t know how to react to it. 

“Tobio,” Mizoguchi calls her, and Tobio turns to him, “I’m going to grab some of my stuff, so I’ll be right back. Will you be okay here for a moment?” At the girls’ nod, Mizoguchi quickly jogs out of the gym, so now, Tobio waits patiently on the bench as she hums some tune to herself to kill her boredom. 

“Ah, hello!” an easy-going voice calls out to her, and the moment Tobio turns to the owner of the voice, she nearly jumps in her seat. At the entrance of the gym is no other than Oikawa and Iwaizumi. Both of them look the same as she remembers back in junior high, just taller (well, Oikawa that is) and handsome. Or beautiful can be used to describe Oikawa when he stands next to a more buff Iwaizumi. Dang, their growth spurt really changes them. 

“Kageyama Tobio, right?” Iwaizumi smiles, “we heard quite a lot about you from coach.”

“R-Really?” dang it! Why does she have to stutter?! This is embarrassing, dang it! “A-Ahh, I’m sure it’s nothing special.”

“I wouldn’t say that,” Iwaizumi replies, “gotta give yourself some credit there. Coach Sadayuki is not the easiest person to impress, and the fact that he talks a lot about you with Coach Irihata, I think that says a lot.” 

Oh god, Tobio wishes that the ground would open up and swallow her whole. What right does he have to make her feel embarrassed?! “W-Well, I….”

Just then Oikawa speaks up, “hello! I saw you at the junior high tournament! You did great!” At that, he takes a step close to the girl, causing her to back herself a bit the best she can on the bench. “It makes me wonder, though, why didn’t you join Aoba Johsai? We could’ve really use a manager like you.”

A tick appears on Iwaizumi’s head and kicks Oikawa’s back, causing the taller boy to yelp in pain while Tobio flinches at the sudden action. What on earth?

“Shut it, Trashykawa! You’re scaring her!” he turns to shock-looking Tobio, “well, we can’t stay here for long, Tobio. We’ll see each other at a practice match.” With a wave, Iwaizumi walks away while dragging Oikawa who yells, “We’ll talk more later Tobio-chan!” 

Just like that, they’re gone as quickly as they came in. Tobio blinks at the opened door and shakes her head; are these two really the same upperclassmen that she admires and respects? They’re so different. 

“Alright, come on, Tobio,” Mizoguchi returns with his stuff and Tobio stands up before limping out to the parking lot with Mizoguchi following her. He helps her into his car before he drives away to drop Tobio off. 

“So, Tobio,” Mizoguchi says as he drives, “I saw you talked with Oikawa and Iwaizumi there. Did you know them?”

“Um, kinda,” Tobio admits, “I mean, I knew them from afar in junior high, but I don’t really talk to them until just now.”

Mizoguchi hums. “I see. Wanna share what you three talked about?”

“Not much. We’re just about to get to know each other because as I said before, we didn’t really get a chance to talk to each other face-to-face. So it’s more like an introduction, I would say.”

She didn’t know how but somehow, they end up stirring the topic of her two ex-upperclassmen to talking about volleyball. It reminds Tobio again why they get along so well. 

“Tobio,” Mizoguchi calls out, his voice serious and Tobio unconsciously sits upright. “I want to let you know that whatever problems you have, you can turn to me...you know, considering the fact that we’re going to be family soon. I’m telling you this because I know the girls I saw there are bullying based on their body language. So...remember, okay?” 

The young girl says nothing, but she nods nonetheless. “I’ll try.”

“No pressure, okay?” Mizoguchi laughs a bit, “I hope I didn’t scare you there.”

Tobio smiles and laughs along as the two talk more until they arrive home. It was almost night time by the time they arrive. 

Mizoguchi manages to calm and explain to her frantic mother, who has been worried when she realises that Tobio isn’t home yet, though Tobio did get a bit of scolding for not at least contacting her about her situation. Her mother later goes on to call Mrs. Okamura to give her a good scolding for not picking Tobio up as promised. She apologizes. 

While her mother reveals that she accepts her apology, she doesn’t think she’ll trust her to pick me up again and asks Mizoguchi if he can pick her up instead. Mizoguchi is more than happy to. 

As usual, Mizoguchi joins them for dinner again and for the first time, Tobio feels complete; like a family. It’s been so long since there’s only her and her mother at the dinner table, and now since Mizoguchi is going to be part of the family soon, dinner becomes more livelier than ever. They talk and laugh like no tomorrow before Mizoguchi has to return to his home. Again, Tobio just has to tell her mother right in front of her fiance that she needs to marry Mizoguchi soon. She couldn’t get enough of their blushing looks. 

But she wasn’t lying when she said that wants them to get married soon. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and Comments are welcome!


	7. Saltyshima

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tobio goes to buy groceries and runs into the only person that she hates. 
> 
> I decided to shift to past tense. Again. I'm sorry for keep switching the tenses but writing this doesn't seem to fit well in present tense.
> 
> Also, kinda late update cause I was actually productive in my studies. Shocker! Hahaha but it’s not much tho because IT system is still down in my university:’)

Tobio would be lying if she said that she didn’t cry: because she did. 

How could she not? The wedding was not only simple yet beautiful but the happiness that emerged from her mothers’ face when she married Mizoguchi, now officially her stepfather, was just amazing. She hadn’t seen her mother so happy in years and to see her happy, especially with a man whom Tobio knew to get along well with her. 

They didn’t go on their honeymoon that long; just spent the weekend at some expensive hotel while Tobio assured that she’s okay staying home alone. Both don't seem to like it but after some time, they reluctantly agree and left enough money for her to buy groceries over the weekend. So that’s where she was right now, at the grocery store at the drinks section.

“Should I go for low fat or full cream milk?” Tobio muttered to herself as she looked between the two drinks until she heard a familiar voice call out to her, “king, what are you doing here?”

And that person just had to call her by that blasted nickname that she hated with great passion. Tobio turned to see the one and only Saltyshima, the very nickname that Hinata came up with for Tsukishima, standing near her with a plastic box of strawberries in his hand. He was in a dark shirt and pants, with his white headphones around his neck and his black glasses sat on the bridge of his nose. Tsukishima gave Tobio a smirked, “what’s wrong king? Surprised to see your subjects?”

Tobio didn’t respond, however. She merely huffed and turned away but Tsukishima provoked, “oh, so you’re giving the silent treatment now? Wow, king, just how low do you see me?”

A tick appeared on her forehead and she whirled around to face him. She hissed, “will you shut it Tsukishima?”

The tall blonde just gave her a bored look and said, “ah, so the king does talk after all. The joy indeed.”

Knowing that she’ll get nowhere by just sitting and arguing with him, Tobio groaned and went her way, hobbling as she goes with her arm crutch while trying to make sure not to sway the basket in her other hand. Tsukishima stared at this and tsked before went to grab the basket, causing the girl to look at him in confusion. 

“Unless you want to fall and break this basket that cost,” he muttered as he moved his glasses against the bridge of his nose, “might as well help you, king. Besides if you do fall, people are going to judge considering the fact that we just associated with each other.”

As much as Tobio wanted to protest and take the basket from with the claim that she can do it herself, she knew that it would be completely false. She did struggle in balancing the basket with her other arm in her crutch, and not to mention that she has milk in it. Eventually at the end of the Tobio, begrudgingly admit that she does indeed need help.

"Fine, thank for helping," she muttered and Tsukishima perked up at that, "the king...nice?"

Tobio blushed and turned away, "shut up!" Her shout was loud and other customers in the store looked at her in annoyance, she flushed and immediately bowed in apology before hobbled away to the vegetable section with Tsukishima boredly following her with the basket. He stood by her side as she looked through the vegetables while looking around in disinterest. After some time, he followed Tobio as she hobbled to the cashier to pay for her groceries. He frowned when she paid his strawberries.

”King, the strawberries are mine,” he pointed it out and the young girl said, “I know. I paid it as a thank you for helping me.”

Tsukishima frowned but eventually huffed before taking the plastic box from her. He watched as the girl hobbled out of the store into the night and that’s when he realised that it was already night time. Just how long did git take for the girl to take to buy her groceries?

Oh well, he shrugged it off after a while. Now to the actual worrying thought, Tobio is going to walk home alone. And the fact that she’s using her crutch made her more vulnerable to any attack. Tsukishima immediately shook his head at the thought and made his way home. However the further he goes, the more of his thoughts attacking his head with guilt.

Eventually, he groaned and turned around before jogged to where Tobio hobbled along, struggling a bit with her bag full of groceries.

She gasped when she felt another hand grabbing her bag and whirled around to hit whoever grabbed her and she heard a familiar voice saying ‘oof’. Tobio’s eyes squinted to see Tsukishima’s face contorted in pain as he rubbed his arm.

”Crap,” she cursed.

”Did you hit anyone who grabbed you, king?” Tsukishima glowered as he rubbed his arm. Dammit, that’s going to bruise.

The young girl froze before her face contorted in horror as she frantically put her crutch down to approach the tall boy, attempting to look at his arm, her grocery bag laid forgotten on the floor.

”I’m so sorry,” she gasped, “why did you grab me like that?! Now you’re probably bruised...”

Immediately she grabbed her grocery bag and motioned for him to follow her to their home. Halfway along though, Tsukishima insisted on carrying the bag despite Tobio saying she’s fine with it until they arrived at her home.

At that point, Tsukishima thought, what did he just got himself into?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments are appreciated!


	8. A Decent Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the first time, Tsukishima and Tobio had a talk decently for once.
> 
> First of all, I want to apologise for not updating this. I've been very busy lately because I had to travel back to see my family (every precaution was checked) and undergo mandatory quarantine. Not to mention uni assignments have been killing me D,: 
> 
> Anyway, hope you enjoy!

Tsukishima couldn’t help but find himself awkward as Tobio fussed over him. It was a different side of her that he didn’t expect she had until this very moment when she forced the tall blonde to sit on the couch as she hobbled over to the kitchen. He heard her ruffled through some kind of cabinet, probably looking for some cream for his bruise. 

Hearing her hobble to find the medicine made him a tad bit guilty because, to be honest, he kinda overacted and it wasn’t that painful. The impact does leave him a bruise, yeah, but it’s not that bad. Maybe he shouldn’t have done that…

“Found the cream!” Tobio called out as she hobbled out of the kitchen. She gently eased herself on the couch, at the side where Tsukishima’s bruise is. “Can pull your sleeve up? I need to see the bruise.”

Tsukishima would’ve used the chance to make a snide comment but the worried look she gave him made him obeyed without much protest. He said nothing as she gently spread the cream over his bruised upper arm and took a glance at the girl, who was doing the job with full concentration with her tongue unconsciously curled over the side of her mouth. Immediately he turned away and hid his face in hand. Dammit, what right does the king have to look cute, he thought as he felt his cheeks heating up.

Tobio looked at the blonde in confusion when he suddenly turned himself away from her. The action made her huffed before she stood up with crutches and limped back into the kitchen to put the cream away. She then went to the grocery bag and took out the ingredients to store them away. For a moment, she completely forgot that Tsukishima was still in her house until she headed to the living room to see him looking at the pictures hanging.

“Where are your parents?” he asked, his time bored as his eyes skimmed through images, “aren't they home?"

"They're on a honeymoon," she simply replied as she hobbled to him, looking through the recent pictures of her mother recent wedding, "they initially wanted me to stay with a friend, but I insist on staying here and that I'll be fine."

Tsukishima huffed at this. "Of course, the king acting all high and brave that she forget about the dangers lurking around at night," he turned to her, "should've taken your parents' suggestion and stay with a friend instead."

The girl just rolled her eyes at this but didn't reply. It wasn't until a few minutes that Tobio's words finally registered in his head. "Wait, honeymoon?"

"They got married," Tobio replied with a trace of annoyance, "though it's obvious enough based on the pictures."

He was aware of the wedding picture, but what made him confused was another frame, located on the far right, that has a picture of a woman whom Tsukishima immediately assumed to be her mother and a different man from the wedding picture. Is her mother divorced?

"You need to make a call?" Tobio called out as she limped to the house phone, "as much as I hate you, I don't think you should walk home alone at this time. I'd prefer you to call your mum or someone you trust to pick you up."

Tsukishima stared at the phone in Tobio's hand and snickered, "so the mighty king do care after all."

The girl glared and pushed the phone into the blonde's arm. He laughed as Tobio turned and hobbled into the kitchen. "Watch it, Tsukishima! I promise to make you eat your words someday!"

The blonde shook his head at this as his laugh tuned down. He pressed a familiar number in the phone and pressed it against his ear as ringing can be heard on the other side, all the while he looked at the picture of Tobio's parents. 

'Divorced?' Tsukishima wondered again as he went to sit on the couch. 'Or dead? No, maybe not...might ask Tobio about it. Someday."

The phone from the other side was picked up and Tsukishima went to talk with his family, while Tobio took a glance at the small frame located on the dining table, where a picture of her mother, a man, and her. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments are appreciated <3


End file.
